The GLA Story
OUR MISSION
Georgia Lawyers for the Arts (GLA) exists to serve the legal needs of artists and arts organizations, to promote closer contact and understanding among members of the legal profession and the arts community, and to educate artists about their legal rights and responsibilities.
Benjamin T. White (left) and Robert C. Lower (right), attorneys with the law firm of Alston & Bird, founded Georgia Lawyers for the Arts in 1975. For 50 years, GLA has used its network of volunteer attorneys to provide free legal assistance to musicians, songwriters, photographers, sculptors, dancers, filmmakers, painters, actors, and artists from many other disciplines who could otherwise not afford legal representation and counseling of their rights.
Over 2,000 lawyers have volunteered their time for GLA. Common legal issues include securing copyright protection, intellectual property misappropriation, negotiating agreements with galleries, recording, publishing and licensing companies, and creating LLCs. Many attorneys also volunteer through GLA’s Georgia PATENTS program to assist inventors with the patent filing process.
GLA provides more than $4,000,000 in pro bono legal services to artists and arts organizations every year.
GLA also refers artists who do not qualify for pro bono services to experienced attorneys. GLA has helped hundreds of nonprofit arts organizations obtain tax-exempt status. Since our inception, GLA has served thousands of artists and arts organizations across the state of Georgia. GLA can provide free mediation services to members as a means of resolving artists’ legal disputes. In addition to providing pro bono legal services to limited-income artists, GLA conducts dozens of free or low-cost educational seminars and workshops for artists and arts organizations on numerous legal and business-related topics.
Our Management Team
Meredith Ragains has served as the Executive Director of Georgia Lawyers for the Arts since 2013. Meredith oversees legal services, education programs, and community relations for the statewide organization. Her duties also include long-range planning, budgetary controls, fundraising, and personnel supervision.
Prior to her work at GLA, Meredith was a litigator for 13 years at Robins Kaplan where she was a member of the Commercial Litigation practice group. In 2009, the State Bar of Georgia awarded Meredith its Pro Bono Project Award for her outstanding work with pro bono clients.
Meredith graduated from Emory University and Mercer Law School. After law school, Meredith clerked for the Honorable G. Ernest Tidwell of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. In addition to her work at GLA, Meredith is an adjunct professor at Emory Law School where she teaches contract drafting, and she regularly guest lectures at the Georgia State University College of Law on intellectual property-related topics.
Kelly oversees the Georgia and Tennessee PATENTS program and manages GLA services. Kelly obtained her LLM from Vanderbilt Law School in 2016 and was the recipient of the Scholastic Excellence Award in Copyright Law. In 2016, she also attended the 17th International Copyright Law Summer Course at University of Amsterdam, Institute for Information Law. Kelly received her JD from Dalhousie University and her MBA from the University of Toronto.
Kelly has over 10 years’ experience in the film and television industry having worked for producers and international distributors of live action and animated productions. She has independently produced two feature films, both of which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. Her experience also includes six years with a boutique branding, research and valuation company.